USS Monitor Interment – Arlington National CemeteryThe Navy announced Feb. 21, 2013 that the March 8, 2013 graveside interment ceremony of the remains of two unknown Sailors recovered from the USS Monitor shipwreck will be open to the public.

The unknown Sailors were lost along with 14 of their shipmates when Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras, N.C. on Dec. 31, 1862.

All 16 Sailors will be memorialized on a group marker in section 46 of the cemetery, which is between the amphitheater and the USS Maine Mast memorial.

The specific date of the interment was chosen to recognize the Monitor’s role in the Battle of Hampton Roads 151 years ago. It is Navy custom and tradition to honor the service member’s final resting place by conducting an official burial ceremony.